School founded by slave trader Edward Colston to be renamed

Headteacher says new name ‘will help us to become an ever more inclusive and welcoming community’

A Bristol private school founded by Edward Colston is to change its name to remove reference of the slave trader.

Colston’s School will be known as Collegiate from the start of the new academic year, its governors have announced.

The institution was founded 300 years ago by Colston, whose statue was pulled down and thrown in the river in Bristol by Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020.

It now joins a number of other institutions in the city who have sought to distance themselves from the 17th century slave trader.

Colston’s School announced in December last year it would be changing its name.

Protesters throwing the statue of Edward Colston into Bristol harbour (PA Wire)

On Tuesday, school governors said it had chosen Collegiate - or more formally “Collegiate School, Bristol” - after a “lengthy” consultation process and receiving hundreds of suggestions.

They said this name emerged as a “strong contender due to its previous connection with the school”.

In 1991, the school merged with the Collegiate School in Winterbourne, becoming co-educational after nearly three centuries as a boys’ school. For a time it was known as Colston’s Collegiate.

It will switch to the new name from September 2022.

The governors emphasised that the change of name was not an attempt to change or deny the school’s history and its links to the slave trade.

Chairman of the board Nick Baker said: “We believe it is important that students attending the school continue to be taught about the school’s history – specifically, Edward Colston’s involvement in the transatlantic slave trade.

“In order to assist with this, some historical aspects of the school, for example the crest and motto, will be retained and explained, rather than removed.”

Headteacher Jeremy McCullough said: “Increasingly our student and parental body reflect the diverse nature of Bristol and we want to continue to work with our local communities in order to widen access to our school as much as possible.

Colston’s School in Bristol has announced its new name (Google Maps)

“We believe that moving forwards with this new name will help us to become an ever more inclusive and welcoming community.”

A survey on whether the school’s name should be changed received more than 2,500 responses – including 1,096 from the general public.

More than four in five (81%) of the members of the public who took part in the survey said the school should retain the name of Colston’s.

But analysis of responses members the school’s community, such as pupils, alumni and staff, showed that they were more inclined to see a change in the name of the school as a positive step.

Referring to the choice of new name, Mr Baker said: “Collegiate not only represents the inclusive nature of the school, but the way in which the different sections of the school and the school community work together.

“Our nursery, junior school, senior school and sixth form all work together for the collective good, so too the school with our parents, former pupils and its wider community.”

Bristol has commemorated Colston - who was its Tory MP and donated extensively to the city - with statues, streets and buildings named after him, and even Colston’s Day on 14 November when Colston buns are eaten.

The statue of the major slave trader in the city centre had been long challenged by residents before being torn down in anti-racism protests last year.

Since that moment, a number of landmarks and institutions named after him have moved to distance themselves.

In November 2020, Colston’s Girls’ School in Bristol announced it would become Montpelier High School after a vote with current students and staff.

Music venue Colston Hall is now named the Bristol Beacon, the Colston Tower is now the Beacon Tower, while a number of other monuments and streets may see their names changed.

Additional reporting by Press Association